Today I’m announcing a brand new addition to my Substack publication: Ink After Dark subscriber chat.
(I meant to send this weeks ago because I realize I already started using this feature)
This is a conversation space exclusively for paid subscribers—kind of like a group chat or live hangout. I’ll post questions and updates that come my way, and you can jump into the discussion.
What you can expect
This is not a new feature to Substack (the newsletter/blog tool I use to communicate with my subscribers), but it is something new for me to use. And because of this I’m going to be throwing many things at the wall to see what sticks and works.
It helps that this year I’m laser focused on writing my first murder mystery book of novelette/novella length. That’s somewhere between 25k - 45k words in length.
A lot goes into writing a mystery and I plan on sharing my process in THREE key locations:
My email newsletter, of which you should already be subscribed, especially if you’re reading this. To gain access to these specific posts you’ll need to be a PAID subscriber. These emails will be more in-depth and eventually be where I share the chapters when I start to serialize the first book. The Murder Pen Society is where I’m collecting all of my research and work. [PAID SUBSCRIBERS]
Substack Notes, like X or Instagram but 1,000% better. No ads. Less drama (depending on who you’re following) and just a really cool place to share, be heard, and interact with fellow writers and readers who are interested in what you’re interested in. This is the best place to find my day-to-day musings and what I’m working on. [FREE TO FOLLOWERS]
Substack Chat, the new addition is a bit like a forum and text chatting in one. It’s honestly not something I’m used to using but I’m excited because unlike the previous two places, this one gives me a direct line to my subscribers separate from my emails that I spend much more time curating and making sure are neat and organized with headers and bold text. Chat is nothing like that at all. In many ways it invites conversation more than Notes and emails. It’s your opportunity to ask me questions and I promise, for me to answer them! [PAID SUBSCRIBERS]
For emails specifically, once you become a paid subscriber you’ll need to make sure that you turn ON receiving emails from my section: The Murder Pen Society, which is presently where I’m working on all things mystery.
How to get started
Get the Substack app by clicking this link or the button below. New chat threads won’t be sent sent via email, so turn on push notifications so you don’t miss conversation as it happens. You can also access chat on the web.
Open the app and tap the Chat icon. It looks like two bubbles in the bottom bar, and you’ll see a row for my chat inside.
That’s it! Jump into my thread to say hi, and if you have any issues, check out Substack’s FAQ.